Description

Setlist:
d1t01 - Turn On Your Lovelight
d1t02 - Dark Star ->
d1t03 - Saint Stephen ->
d1t04 - The Eleven ->
d1t05 - Drums ->
d1t06 - The Other One ->
d1t07 - Cryptical Envelopment ->
d1t08 - And We Bid You Good Night

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Reviewer: swampRatchild - - December 29, 2012
Subject: classic
A classic monster set.This set just builds into cresendo that explodes with the eleven.Pure energy.5 stars any day.

Reviewer: JasW - - April 16, 2012
Subject: Miami Pop Festival
The Dead played the second day of this three-day festival, which took place at the Gulfstream Race Track in Hallandale, just north of Miami. It was the first of three festivals the Dead would play within exactly a single year in the Miami area (the following two being the Big Rock Pow-Wow at the Hollywood Seminole Indian Reservation on 1969-05-23 and 1969-05-24, which you can find on RT4:1, and the Miami Rock Festival at the Miami-Hollywood Speedway on 1969-12-28).

For some reason, at least through their first ten years, the Dead played some of their best shows in the Miami area -- the three festival shows, a show at Pirate World during their spring '70 tour, the 1974 Miami Jai-Alai show, and of course the legendary Barton-beater on 1977-05-22 at the Sportatorium.

This is an excellent, festival-shortened representation of the '68 Dead. Lovelight, a Dark Star that was still only 10 minutes and quickly evolving, St. Stephen, The Eleven, The Other One, and Cryptical all flow seamlessly in a single hour-long set, and they are ALL uniformly top-notch performances.

Lovelight is all we hear from Pig, recently returned from his "firing." TC, who had been with the band for just over a month by this point, is innocuous, and pops up only from time to time.

The sound is quite good for the time period, although saturation is occasionally evident. The mix is superb.

All in all, this is a wonderful, self-contained one-hour nugget of the band that in two months would give us the performances that comprised Live Dead.

Reviewer: Pangolin22 - - October 6, 2011
Subject: Just Incredible
Charlie Miller works his magic on an already magical 68 set. What more needs to be said? One thing. That snack-sized Dark Star is a gem with some crisp, sharp guitar work by Jerry. This show is a must.

Reviewer: smokingcratersofthemind - - July 13, 2011
Subject: Here Lands the Words; Then you see it open
If the words come to me, they are merely an accidental precipitate of this flowing beauty's enthralling chemistry- through me!, that throws the combustile thoughts among my brain into all directions ... Here lands the words

They are gliding into 69, the wings of their music soaring, this really isn't 68 or 69 though... its just music, and from there it takes on a whole new meaning- a lotus flower, so simple once. Then you see it open

Reviewer: clementinescaboose - - July 25, 2010
Subject: raw essentials
'68 at its best...you can't call yourself a primal dead fan w/o this...

Reviewer: oh_uh_um_ah - - March 6, 2009
Subject: THe GRATEFUL DEAD "Live On Stage" December 29, 1968, at the Gulfstream Race Track, Hallandale, FL, U.S.A.
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~^|\_@|@_/|^~
~<->/<->\<->~

Thank you Mr. Miller.

A "Must Have" show from 1968.

Here's the GRATEFUL DEAD we used to listen to, here's the sound that captured a generation and changed the world.

1968 was a bloody year of riots in Chicago at the DNC Convention, the War in Vietnam, Political assassinations of RFK and MLK, draft-card college protests, drugs, Nixon had just won the Presidency in November, and preparing Apollo for the Moon landing in July 69...Woodstock was still 7 months away from happening...

America was ripping itself apart. Jimmi Hendrix, Jim Morrision, Janis Joplin, The GRATEFUL DEAD, The BEATLES, The Rolling Stones, The Cream, were writing the soundtrack to the "changes".

Eat, Drink, Be Merry and Listen to the GRATEFUL DEAD.

Thanks for the "LOVE" from 1968.

PS: I wonder how many people miss 1968?

Reviewer: wrkster - - March 6, 2009
Subject: Jerry's guitar is on fire, blazing solo's in Eleven & Other One!
Check it out!

Reviewer: Cliff Hucker - - February 23, 2009
Subject: Something about south Florida in January?
Not the tightest playing of '68, but this high-energy south Florida festival set is a steamroller!

From the middle of St. Stepehen through Cryptical, Jerry cannot be restrained and your senses are left bludgeoned. (98 pts)

Reviewer: NYLifer - - December 29, 2008
Subject: ethnomusicologists
Stellar playing and performance.
At the very end of Lovelight, talking about the next song, Dark Star, Phil says "We once put this out on a single, that's interesting", Jer says "One of our obscure singles" and Bob chimes in that this is "For you ethnomusicologists."!

Reviewer: average_joe - - May 20, 2008
Subject: Dig It...
This show is real groovy. I really enjoy listening to these earlier Dark Stars. Their evolution is definitely something every Head should give close attention to.
I'm still of the opinion that the sweetest piece of music the Dead over put together was the Dark Star> St. Stephen> The Eleven opus. This one is pretty hot.
I enjoyed it fairly well.
Peace. Jesus Heals.

Reviewer: CarrionCrow - - March 30, 2008
Subject: Really clear vocals and all round solid early versions
Really clear vocals and all round solid early versions of these standards. These are the versions I first heard live and still find I get pulled back to this fabulous time.

Notes

Notes:
-- Lovelight fades in, very little missing
-- Cleaned up cuts in Dark Star, St. Stephen and The Other One
-- I also worked on the levels a bit